Redemption

 

Shared Values of the Old and New Testaments

Redemption

God sent the people of Judah away for 70 years from the land they loved to be governed by their enemies. He promised them he would do that and he also promised they would be returned to their homeland when they were ready to ask for forgiveness of the sins that got them there. God is a God of redemption, grace, and mercy in the Old and New Testament. These scriptures show anyone with an honest desire to know God can BOLDLY go to him in any circumstance and be fully redeemed. 

Zechariah 10:6-7 (TLB) 6 “I will strengthen Judah, yes, and Israel too; I will reestablish them because I love them. It will be as though I had never cast them all away, for I, the Lord their God, will hear their cries. 7 They shall be like mighty warriors. They shall be happy as with wine. Their children, too, shall see the mercies of the Lord and be glad. Their hearts shall rejoice in the Lord. will be under my personal care.”

Hebrews 4:16 (TLB)  16 So let us come boldly to the very throne of God and stay there to receive his mercy and to find grace to help us in our times of need.

7/26/2026

Justice, Fairness and Compassion

Shared Values of the Old and New Testaments

Justice, Fairness and Compassion

In the Bible, “fatherless” is interchangeable with “orphans.” Now, as then, a home without a father is a home at risk. The Old and New Testaments are consistent in the values of spiritually and physically caring for widows, orphans, and the most vulnerable who are unable to do what is necessary to survive alone: God himself is a father to the fatherless and he gives justice to the widows. The world benefits, or suffers, depending upon the degree of partnership with God in addressing these issues. 

Psalm 68: 5-6 (TLB) 5 He is a father to the fatherless; he gives justice to the widows, for he is holy. 6 He gives families to the lonely, and releases prisoners from jail, singing with joy! But for rebels there is famine and distress.

James 1:27 (GNV) 27 Pure religion and undefiled before God, even the Father, is this, to visit the fatherless, and widows in their adversity, and to keep himself unspotted of the world.

7/19/2026

Shared Values - A Sovereign God (2)

Shared Values of the Old Testament and New Testaments

A Sovereign God (2)

In Gen. 50:20, Joseph is speaking to the brothers who threw him down a well and left him for dead. This is a serious crime no matter what century.  Abuse and murdering children are the most heinous of crimes today.  In the moments when he could have had his brothers killed by palace guards, Joseph speaks words of the sovereignty of God: God's plans are long term and eternal.  It takes time to understand how true this is, but Joseph shows it can be done.  

Genesis 50:20 (TLB) 20 …. God turned into good what you meant for evil, for he brought me to this high position I have today so that I could save the lives of many people. 

Ephesians 1:11 (TLB) 11 ……for as part of God’s sovereign plan we were chosen from the beginning to be his, and all things happen just as he decided long ago.

7/12/2026

Shared Values - The Sovereignty of God

Shared Values of the Old and New Testaments 
A Sovereign God

The Old and New Testaments show a God who created everything AND is active in what he created.  Leadership and influence, whether good in God’s sight or not, is in place because he allows it. You work with God to learn your duties within it. Daniel said that God alone determines events. You cannot know his plans for each person for all eternity, but you can know he replaces what the locusts have taken and you are precious in his sight. 

Daniel 2:20-22 (TLB) 20 saying, “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for he alone has all wisdom and all power. 21 World events are under his control. He removes kings and sets others on their thrones. He gives wise men their wisdom and scholars their intelligence. 22 He reveals profound mysteries beyond man’s understanding. He knows all hidden things, for he is light, and darkness is no obstacle to him.

Acts 17:24-25 (TLB) 24 “He made the world and everything in it, and since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples; 25 and human hands can’t minister to his needs—for he has no needs! He himself gives life and breath to everything, and satisfies every need there is.

7/5/2026